Chapter 81

☆ ☆ James ☆ ☆ 

Maybe Kara was right. I tried to follow her as she stormed off to our bedroom, but it was clear she didn't want to be near me. I felt terrible that Kara felt used. I only wanted to bring her joy and happiness; she meant everything to me. It wasn't clear to me that she couldn't see that.

I sighed deeply. Kara had slammed the bedroom door before locking it, but unfortunately, sleeping on the couch wasn't an option for me. I suppose I could adjust the guest room for my needs if she refused to let me in later, but there was still plenty of time before sunrise. 

This wasn't how I was expecting my night to go, so I swiftly retreated to the central kitchen, where I gorged myself on several packets of blood. I figured if I couldn't spend the rest of my night with her, I might as well train some more. After draining the fifth packet, I felt like I couldn't drink another drop, so I cleaned up my mess before heading outside.

I went to the area where Sylas and I were training earlier this evening and bit into my wrists. Controlling two streams of blood simultaneously was more challenging, but there was no doubt in my mind that Viviana's hemokinesis user could do it with ease. Up until now, I had only controlled it from my right hand. 

My left hand's stream was sloppy and uncoordinated, but I would need to become ambidextrous to be proficient. I thought my ability to play the piano would have aided in this skill, but that was muscle memory, and I would have to train this in the same way. I tried to lift the remaining half of the car with the stream from the left arm while whipping the blood on my right side impredictably as though I was shielding one side.

It was also difficult to push and pull blood from the sides to compensate for the task at hand. I still heeded Sylas' warning from the first night and didn't want to utilize too much blood, leaving myself barren. I couldn't lift the car. It wasn't that the blood was weaker or anything like that; I was simply unable to control it as fluidly as my right side.

I grunted as I tried again to heave the heavy vehicle, but it was to no avail. I pulled my blood back into myself and wiped my brow with the back of my hand. I paced as I contemplated how to achieve this feat and tried again. My skin had already closed back up, so I bit only into my left wrist this time.

I focused, pooling all of my strength and the power from the demon that inhabited my body and willed the blood to cooperate. It wrapped tightly around the remaining front half, and I put everything I had in me to manipulate it. I watched my right hand and tried to mirror the movements. 

I got close a few times, but close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. I needed to be successful if I genuinely wanted to keep Kara safe from the werewolves and try to fight for a spot in Viviana's clan to secure our future away from Sylas. Our argument came into my mind for some reason, enraging me.

I was not using Kara. I would never use Kara for my own selfish gain. I was pissed that she even thought that way about me, tarnishing the view she had of me. What dark seed had been implanted for her to feel this way, especially about me? Perhaps she was just angry about the update from Layla. 

Or maybe she was just frustrated by the situation in its entirety and taking it out on me. People do that; they displace their anger on their loved ones. The rage inside built as I questioned these things, and I felt more powerful. The front half of the car finally lifted, though it was maybe only two inches off the ground.

It was a start. I wasn't yet coordinated enough to throw it, but at least progress was being made. It took everything in me to accomplish the small feat, but I could build off of it. The last time I felt this powerful was when I was angry at Sylas and tore his office to shreds. I didn't like feeling this irate at Kara, but what choice had she left me?

I inhaled deeply as I set the vehicle's front half down and pooled my hemokinesis back into me. I tried to regain my composure in the cool night air and took several more deep breaths. Vampires didn't need oxygen to survive, but it was almost instinctual. It also helped me calm down, which was beneficial. 

I paced for a little longer, waiting for my rage to cease. I heard something in the distance, which triggered my fight response. I bit into my right wrist and controlled my blood, shooting out strands as thin as a spider's web covering the area around me. If the intruder stepped anywhere toward me, I would be able to pinpoint their approach. 

I waited in silence and listened carefully; if the werewolves had come back looking for a fight, I would give them one hell of one. I heard the cold, frostbitten ground crunch to my left and focused my attention in that direction. A familiar shadow approached me. It was Sylas.

Sylas called out, "You can lower your defenses; it's only me." I breathed a sigh of relief and pulled the treads back into myself. I replied, "I thought the werewolves might have sent others since you had those Betas assassinated." Sylas chuckled malevolently, "Not at all. I noticed you were out here after I got off the phone with Viviana, so I came to inspect."

I rolled my eyes, "What did she have to say?" He responded, "Just an update: "The flea-ridden mutts had a meeting today, and Greed, her spy, picked up on a few things. I asked, "Is this about their plan to kill Kara if she doesn't willingly go with them when they attack?" Sylas' face became perplexed as he walked closer to me.

He asked, "Where did you hear that?" I said, "Layla texted Kara to inform her of their plan. Apparently, she's being held captive for standing up against the Ulfric regarding their decision." Sylas stroked his chin, "Interesting." I nodded, "We were supposed to talk about it some more tonight, but Kara is in a pissy mood; she's tired of being used by everyone, myself included."

Sylas shook his head in disbelief, "Is she just now figuring out that her heir is the only reason she's worth anything to anyone besides you?" I grit my teeth at his statement. No wonder Kara felt that way. I asked, "What would happen if we had sex before we completed the blood bond?" 

Sylas chuckled, "You can't hold out for a few more days?" I rolled my eyes, "Seriously, what would happen?" Sylas replied, "I don't know. The prophecy didn't go into that much detail; it didn't say she had to be a virgin or anything." He paused and stroked his chin again, "A number of things could happen, I suppose."

He continued, "You two could spawn a dhampir, and though it is not as promising as a hybrid, it would still be more powerful than normal vampires. The bitch would still die upon the birth unless you were able to turn her."

He thought some more, "But then again, she's a werewolf. Her body could reject the pregnancy, or it could enable her to shift into her wolf, and she could accidentally kill you with a single bite. Maybe nothing will happen, and the possible outcomes will be endless. I could go on for at least an hour of potential end results." 

I thought to myself for a moment; the unknowns could be detrimental for both of us. It just wasn't worth the risk, in my opinion, to act recklessly over primal desires. Fuck, I wanted to feel her wrapped tightly around my cock as I thrust deeply inside of her, too; I have wanted it since Sylas first told me about her.

I shook my head to dispel my thoughts and continued the conversation with Sylas. It was possible that he had learned more information today that could prove beneficial to us. I asked, "What else did you find out?" Sylas began again, "They know about three unique abilities but don't have a clue that they are tied to the first vampires."

"Which ones?", I asked. He replied, "Wrath, Gluttony, and Lust's abilities." I asked, "What else?", knowing there had to be more." His face turned grim, "They may be teaming up with a witch to try to sway the outcome of this battle in their favor." I now understood his expression. Witches were powerful in their own right and weren't too fond of our kind.

They tended to leave us alone unless one was stupid enough to attack them. However, there was a lot of bad blood and history between our kinds. If history repeated itself, it would not be in our favor, especially if the witch they enlisted had a large coven behind her.